Pakistan, Feb. 7 -- The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics officially start with a star-studded opening ceremony at the San Siro Stadium on Friday, while US ski great Lindsey Vonn tests her injured knee in a crucial practice run.

The most geographically dispersed Games in history will get underway in Italy's economic capital at 1900 GMT with a three-hour extravaganza that takes in the three other sites spread across the Alps and the Dolomites.

For the first time the 2,900 athletes will parade in the venues closest to where they will compete, in a bid to minimise travel.

The ceremony is expected to draw a global audience of hundreds of millions and offers "a unique platform to convey positive messages, not divisive ones," creative director M...